Back in the day, those stay-at-home moms knew how to stretch their dollars. It was practically an art form. When women weren’t working outside the home, they did what they could to cut costs in any way they had at their disposal.

Since many women did the grocery shopping, clipping coupons was a smart way to save money. And that’s still an effective method to use today. But another tool women used to ensure they didn’t spend more than they had to at a grocery store was to plan a menu.

The weekly menu kept everything on track. Women didn’t have to worry about what they would make for meals from day to day. And when they went shopping, they had a list of all the groceries they would need for that menu. They didn’t buy anything that would sit in their refrigerator past its prime and eventually have to be thrown away.

Today, menus can be just as valuable. Instead of grabbing a sandwich at a fast food restaurant, you can go home after work with a firm plan of what you’ll do for a healthy meal. And menus can be real money savers. Here’s why.

No Waste

Many of us buy produce or even meat that we plan to eat. We put it in the refrigerator and forget about it until it resembles some kind of gross science experiment. Then we have to throw it away. And that’s literally like tossing dollar bills in the trash.

Buying just enough to cover your meals and using everything you buy will save you a lot of money just from avoiding the waste.

You Can Match Your Menu To Sales

Is there an incredible deal on chicken this week at your favorite store? If so, you can lock in those savings by planning a lot of your meals this week around that sales ingredient.

By looking at the sales flyer for the store ahead of time, you’ll be able to spot those sales. You can even turn it into a game of sorts in which you try to incorporate as many sales foods as possible into your menu.

You Won’t Be Eating Out

Many of us decide to order takeout after a long day at work because we’re tired and can’t face the thought of cooking. Or we aren’t really sure what we have at home to fix and we don’t want to have to stop by the store when we barely have the energy to press the gas pedal to get ourselves home.

If you have a simple fix for dinner ready to go at home, you’re going to save a small fortune by not eating out. You’ll also save a bit on the gas money you would have had to shell out to get to the restaurant.

Stay Away From Impulse Groceries

Without a firm menu in mind, it can be far too easy to splurge on groceries you know you shouldn’t be buying in the first place if you’re on a tight budget. Those steaks might catch your eye if you don’t have a plan when you enter the store. But with a menu in hand, you’ll walk right by and stick to the list.

Many things have changed since your grandparents were young, but some things never go out of style – like solid financial tips.

By implementing some of their best money tips, you’ll find yourself in a much better financial position than by following what your peers are.

Pay Cash

Cash in hand is always the best policy when buying something. Back in the day, people saved up for things until they had the money to buy them. That kept them from overspending or getting in over their heads financially.

With today’s credit cards, it’s too easy to let things get out of control.

Don’t Treat Your Stuff Carelessly

We’re all guilty of this. We don’t take care of our stuff like we should, which leads to us having to replace it before we should have to. It happens all the time, we’re careless and do things like leaving our grill out uncovered in the elements without a cover to protect it. Doing basic maintenance on your stuff will extend its life and will keep money in your pocket.

Learning Skills

In order to save money, people back in the day were Jacks of all trades. They knew how to do a little of everything to help keep their costs lower. Whether it was doing their own car repairs, carpentry, or sewing, they knew they had to get by on their own accord.

Hiring an expert wasn’t always an option so they did what they could to solve their own problems.

Owning Instead of Renting

If you’re going to be paying for something anyway, you might as well own it instead of renting it. That gives you equity and builds your net worth.

Whether it’s a vehicle, land, or a house, renting doesn’t make as much sense as owning does. At the end of 30 years, if you rent an apartment, you’ll have to keep renting. You’ll be paying that same amount of money every month to your landlord. If you own a home, you’ll just have to pay the property taxes, insurance, and any repairs. By renting, you’re making your landlord rich. By buying, you’re making yourself rich.

Being Prepared for Hard Times

Having money set back for emergencies was a way of life for your grandparents. They didn’t expect their world would be all rosy. They knew they weren’t exempt from the hardships of life. While you’ll always have bad things happen, they won’t seem quite as insurmountable if you have a way to pay for them.

If you establish a savings account like your grandparents had, you’ll have more security and you’ll sleep better at night.

Grow Your Own Food

In recent years, there has been a return to growing crops in your own backyard gardens. Not only is this a tastier and more convenient way to get fresh produce, but it is also more cost efficient too. Your grandparents knew this and many people from this generation toiled in their own backyards for the betterment of their families and their bottom lines.

Your finances are a mess and you know it. It keeps you up at night and has you so worried you’re willing to do anything you can to clean them up. But you’re not even sure what to do first. You have credit card debt, zero savings, and you’ve never set up a retirement account. You’re starting from square one.

If this sounds like you, don’t worry. We’ll get you on the path to financial freedom. But you have to be willing to put in the work and make some sacrifices along the way.

Here are the steps you should take to get there.

Start An Emergency Fund

If you have no savings at all, you’re living paycheck to paycheck. Many Americans do, but it’s a scary place to be. You need to get a bare minimum set up in a savings account. You should shoot for at least $1,000 to begin with.

That can seem like a crazy amount to save up when you’re starting from nothing. But there are several ways to get there.

First off, if your company lets you, ask to pick up a few overtime hours. Make sure you only use that money for your savings, not for extra spending.

If you can’t get any extra hours, you might want to think about getting a part-time job for a while. I know it’s not fun to work all day at your full-time job and then spend a couple evenings working more, but it will help you breeze through your emergency fund. With a part-time job, you can fund the first thousand in a couple of months.

If you don’t want to work extra, you’re going to have to make cuts. The easiest place to do that is usually in food spending.

Hammer At That Credit Card Debt

Once your emergency fund is in place and you’ve committed not to touch it for anything other than emergencies, you should start chipping away at your credit card debt. That can take a long time depending on how much you have and how devoted you are to tackling it.

You might need to sell some of your stuff, continue on with your part-time job, or make steep cuts to your budget to clear it up. It might take months or it might take years, but you’ll feel so happy every time you get that statement and see the amount lowering.

Start Your Retirement Account

Some experts will tell you to clear up your credit card debt before you open a retirement account. But you don’t want to put your retirement savings on hold indefinitely. If you struggle with clearing up that debt, you don’t want to lose years when you could have been saving for your retirement.

Here’s what you can do instead. Take a month or two to get a good start on that credit card debt before opening a retirement account. That will at least give you the confidence to know that you can do it when you see the balance dropping.

Then open a 401k at work and put in at least enough to take advantage of all the matching money your company offers. If you don’t, you’ll be leaving money on the table.